SEASONAL PARK CLOSURES RELEASED FOR OTHER ANNUAL DEER MANAGEMENT OPERATIONS
SILVER SPRING, MD — Montgomery Parks, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) has approved a Pilot Archery Managed Deer Hunting Program for implementation in the Great Seneca Stream Valley Park, Unit 1 in Germantown and the Watts Branch Stream Valley Units 1 & 2 in Potomac.
Approximately four hundred comments were provided by the public offering opinions on the proposal. Public support was greater than opposition, by a slight margin. Those in opposition shared concern for potential excessive wounding and suffering by way of archery hunting. The goal of every managed hunting program is to experience no wounding loss. With that in mind, the Department recognizes that perfection is unlikely. As such, it is possible that wounding loss will occur at some level. Through selection and training of hunting participants, the Department of Parks is committed to making every effort to reduce the probability of wounding loss. Similar programs, throughout the region have shown varying rates of loss ranging from 3% – 17%. These rates of unintended injury are consistent with other methods of lethal and non-lethal deer population management, including those of immunocontraception and surgical sterilization programs. It may also be worth noting that, in every case, deer experience some level of trauma at death; whether by natural causes or by accidents. The intent of the pilot Archery Managed Deer Hunting Program is to evaluate the method against the presumptions and to demonstrate that archery may be a safe and effective method for deer population management on Montgomery County parklands. The Department of Parks is dedicated to a responsible and humane approach as part of all of its deer population management programs. If at any time the rate of wounding, or unsafe practices are revealed as unacceptable, immediate action will be taken to mitigate for these or to suspend programming.
The Archery Managed Deer Hunting Program will be in place concurrent with the Maryland regulated archery season, September 11 through January 31. Affected parks will remain open to public use while archery hunting is occurring. Archery hunting, by permit only, will be permitted Monday through Saturday. Program suspension will occur during the entire month of December and during established State regulated firearms and muzzleloader seasons.
The selected units of Great Seneca and Watts Branch Stream Valley Parks will be posted with signage to aware park users of this activity. Areas accessible for permitted hunters will be delineated with signage and maps which will be provided to the assigned hunting groups. Hunting and weapons discharge will be restricted to a distance of at least one-hundred thirty yards from homes, and a maximum of 6 hunters will be permitted at each park location per day.
One qualified, organized group will be assigned to each affected park location. Groups will consist of no less than 6 qualified hunters. Each individual, qualified hunter will be required to demonstrate: having completed both a State Hunter Education/Safety Course and a State or National Bowhunter Education Foundation Bowhunter Education/Safety Course, a history of archery hunting experience and record of success, current shooting proficiency under the standards and guidelines set forth by the Department of Parks, and must meet the requirements of a criminal background investigation.
Organized hunting groups will be considered for assignment, by way of an application and review procedure. One selected group will be assigned to each affected park location for the duration of the 2015 – 2016 Montgomery Parks Archery Managed Deer Hunting Season.
Qualified groups will consist of/demonstrate:
- Group Name
- Identified Group Leader(s)/Coordinator(s)
- At least 6 intended participating hunters (pending qualifications)
- Possession of, or active pursuit of, group Liability Insurance policy (min $1,000,000 per occurrence with M-NCPPC; Montgomery Parks named “Additional Insured”)
- Resume’ outlining group experience
- Written, verifiable references for the group
Interested groups may submit application materials for consideration. Applications may be obtained by visiting www.parksdeermanagement.org and/or by request to: MCP-Deermanagement@montgomeryparks.org. The deadline for submitting applications is Thursday, August 20, 2015 at 3:00PM. Applications may be submitted by Email or U.S. Mail as follows;
Email- MCP-Deermanagement@montgomeryparks.org or U.S Mail- 12535 Milestone Manor Lane, Germantown, MD 20876
For specific details pertaining to the requirements and expectations for selected/assigned groups, as well as the required qualification standards for individual hunting participants within these groups, please visit parksdeermanagement.org, send an email request to MCP-Deermanagement@montgomeryparks.org or call 301-962-1344.
SEASONAL PARK CLOSURES FOR ANNUAL DEER MANAGEMENT OPERATIONS
Additionally, Montgomery Parks will launch the remainder of its fall 2015/winter 2016 deer management operations season on October 23. Several parks will be closed intermittently during the program which takes place through the end of February. Lottery-based and Cooperative Shotgun Managed Deer Hunts will take place in 10 parks in the Montgomery Parks system to address adverse impacts of burgeoning deer populations on local neighborhoods. (A complete schedule of park closure dates and times is listed at the end of the release.) Further details pertaining to upcoming Park Police-based Sharpshooting operations, and any proposed new initiatives will be forthcoming later this fall.
Montgomery Parks conducts its deer management program with qualified, pre-screened hunters and specially trained Park Police sharpshooters to ensure the operations are carried out in a safe and humane manner. More details about these programs are available at www.parksdeermanagement.org.
“The safety of residents is our top priority,” said Montgomery Parks Wildlife Ecologist Bill Hamilton, adding that “in nineteen years of operations, and having harvested 15,000 deer, we have not had one occurrence of personal injury of the public as a result of the Department’s deer management operations.”
In advance of the hunts, yellow and black “Park Notice” signs are posted throughout and surrounding affected parks, at all park entrances and in surrounding communities, to aware park visitors of dates of closure.
Dates and Locations of Park Closure
FY2016 M-NCPPC, Department of Parks, Montgomery County
Deer Population Management Programs
Lottery-Based and Cooperative Managed Deer Hunting Programs
[Parks Closed from Sunrise – Sunset]
October
23 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
26 – Rachel Carson Conservation Park (Olney)
28 – Great Seneca SVU1/North Germantown Greenway Parks (Goshen)
30 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
November
4 – Great Seneca SVU1/North Germantown Greenway Parks (Goshen)
7 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
9 – Rachel Carson Conservation Park (Olney)
10 – Blockhouse Point Conservation Park (Darnestown)
13 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
14 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
17 – Blockhouse Point Conservation Park (Darnestown)
18 – Great Seneca SVU1/North Germantown Greenway Parks (Goshen)
21– Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
23 – Rachel Carson Conservation Park (Olney)
24 – Blockhouse Point Conservation Park (Darnestown)
December
4 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
5 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
8-11 Little Bennett Regional Park (Clarksburg)
12 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
15 – Blockhouse Point Conservation Park (Darnestown)
16 – Great Seneca SVU1/North Germantown Greenway Parks (Goshen)
18 – Black Hill Regional Park (10 Mi Creek Seg), Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park (Boyds) & Little Seneca Stream Valley Park (Boyds)
19 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
21 – Rachel Carson Conservation Park (Olney)
January
2 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
8 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
9 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
15 – Black Hill Regional Park (10 Mi Creek Seg), Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park (Boyds) & Little Seneca Stream Valley Park (Boyds)
16 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
22 – Woodstock Equestrian Park (Beallsville)
29 – Black Hill Regional Park (10 Mi Creek Seg), Bucklodge Forest Conservation Park (Boyds) & Little Seneca Stream Valley Park (Boyds)
30 – Hoyles Mill Conservation Park (Boyds)
Tenant-Based Managed Deer Hunting Program
[Park Closed to Public Access Year Round]
Goshen Recreation Park (Goshen)
Park Police-Based Sharpshooting Operations
[Parks Closed 6:00PM – 6:00AM daily, January 10 – February 28]
Established Park Police-based Sharpshooting park locations include:
Agricultural History Farm Park (Derwood – including attached segments of Rock Creek Stream Valley Units 15 & 16)
Black Hill Regional Park [Day Use Area] (Boyds)
Cabin John Regional Park (Bethesda)
Martin Luther King Jr. Recreational Park (Silver Spring)
Needwood Golf Course (Rockville)
North Branch Stream Valley Park Units 2 & 3 (Norbeck)
North Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 4 (Olney)
Northwest Branch Recreation Park (Aspen Hill – including Layhill Local Park in Wheaton)
Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park Unit 7 (Norwood)
Northwest Golf Course (Wheaton)
Paint Branch Stream Valley Park Units 5 & 6 (Silver Spring – including Pilgrim Hill Local Park, Valley Mill Special Park, Tamarack Neighborhood Park and Paint Branch Neighborhood Park)
Red Door Store Historical Cultural Park (Sandy Spring)
Rock Creek Regional Park (Rockville)
Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 2 (Chevy Chase)
Rock Creek Stream Valley Park Unit 7 (Aspen Hill)
Sligo Creek Golf Course (Silver Spring)
Wheaton Regional Park (Wheaton)
Woodlawn Cultural Special Park (Sandy Spring)
About Montgomery Parks Deer Management Program
The deer population reduction program began in 1996 following recommendations from the Montgomery County Deer Management Work Group (DMWG), and in response to citizen concerns about the deer population.
For more information on the County’s deer management program see The Montgomery County Deer Management Program Annual Report and Recommendations for Fiscal Year 2016 which contains data on deer impacts and recommendations for the upcoming year. This and other information including a copy of the county’s deer management plan, and information on deer management operations, are available at www.ParksDeerManagement.org.
Contact:
For any media inquiries, contact: Abbigail Irelan, Marketing & Public Affairs Manager, M-NCPPC Montgomery Parks
Abbigail.Irelan@MontgomeryParks.org
O: 301-495-2532